-= Gametoast.com =-

DOSSIER CHEAT: Joypads in SWB and in-game AutoAim

by =XSL=Fds[iTa] and the =XSL= AntiCheat Team [XSLclan.com]



This text want to describe probably one of the most dangerous "errors" made by Pandemic in the coding/conversion of the PC version of Star Wars Battlefront.



_______________________________________________________________
- Introduction

Our first suspect started when we noticed that there were players around the SWB servers that could kill enemies with normal blasters in about 3 - 4 laser bolts, without missing any shot or with a very low percentage of miss.

This strange thing convinced us to start a surveying for understanding how it could be possible.

After about a month of various covert operations we discovered a trace:

- all those players used to play infantry classes WITH A JOYPAD.

So, we thought that probably the advantage could be determined by the structure of SWB maps, usually all flat, because designed for be played with a console joypad.

But...



_______________________________________________________________
- The Problem

... the real problem appeared at our eyes when we tried to use Joypads with infantry classes:

The Joypad was AIMING ALONE!

The joypad was automatically targetting the enemy.

We tested these joypads with SWB:

Microsoft Sidewinder
Microsoft Sidewinder Freestyle Pro
Saitek P3000 Wireless
Logitech Rumblepad
Logitech Precision USB


but can be tested with any model on the market, it is not related on the Joypad Model.

Probably is a feature designed for Xbox and PS2 players, for help the aiming with console joypads. The problem is that they did not remove this part of code from the PC version.

We made a video demostration of the AutoAiming Effect.
Download it here:

http://www.xslclan.com/joypadcheatsurve ... ad_cit.wmv

Like can be seen in the video, not all classes support the autoaim effect:

For example Rocket Launcher, Sniper Rifle, Granade Launcher and EMP Cannon does not AutoAim, but Pistol, Blaster Rifle, Electric Pilot Rifle, DarkTrooper/RebelPilot Shotgun have the AutoAim help if used with a Joypad.



_______________________________________________________________
- The Solution

This AutoAiming feature is a big problem for the game.
It can not be called exactly a cheat, because it is not an external program, but its effect is EXACTLY LIKE A CHEAT!

Howether, during a research on our archives, we have found the server side command called "/noaim".
We tested this command on some test servers and we discovered what we hoped:

This command can DISABLE THE AUTOAIMING EFFECT!!!

And without this effect, all the Joypads that we tested loss their strange precision.

Remember:
The command is /noaim and have to be added in the APP_COMMAND_LINE_BASIC on the file "battlefront server.ini", contained in the root Dedicated Server Folder.



_______________________________________________________________
- Conclusions

Now the problem is public, and the solution too.

What can be done for definitively solve the problem?


1) Pandemic MUST remove this feature from the PC Version of StarWars Battlefront in the next patch.

2) Server Admins have to add in their battlefront server.ini the /noaim command.

3) All Tournaments-Leagues that at the moment support SWB have to disallow the use of joypads in official matches.

4) All the clans that do not want to cheat have to PREVENT their members from the use of Joypads in SWB with Infantry Classes.



At the moment all the players that use a Joypad with infantry classes in StarWars Battlefront are like cheaters.
Probably involuntarily.

But if they continue to use it after the reading of this document,
they want to be cheaters voluntarily.




I want to say thanks to all the =XSL= members that spent their time in the discovering, analizing, testing and documenting this "feature", to ORG]=Antakah for his online tests of the /noaim setting and to TAW_Rebel for his support.



Vis Nobiscum EST! SEMPER!

=XSL=Fds[iTa]
=XSL= Xa'Felian Space Legion Clan Leader
=XSL= AntiCheat Team Leader
http://www.XSLclan.com
The First Italian StarWars Battlefront Clan!
The First StarWars Republic Commando Clan on the World!

The Playstation 2 version has autoaim. I think it is enabled by default on the PS2. It will lock on automatically to whichever enemy you are looking at. Other PC games have the autoaim feature and I think some use it with the mouse as well as gamepads. It isn't as if Battlefront is the only PC game that uses it.

It isn't a cheat of any kind and I don't really think it should be removed from the game completely. I think they just need to make it automatically disabled for online play. They should do the same for the online play of the console versions. If people want to use it for offline play then that is their business. Autoaim just makes you a weaker player when you're forced to not use it anymore. So if you rely on using it all of the time then you're really just hurting yourself for later on when you're forced to not use it.

fett42 wrote:Other PC games have the autoaim feature and I think some use it with the mouse as well as gamepads.

Those things are called cheats.

Do you know Punkbuster?

Howether in online matches can be disable with the /noaim server-side command.

Like i said:

This AutoAiming feature is a big problem for the game.
It can not be called exactly a cheat, because it is not an external program, but its effect is EXACTLY LIKE A CHEAT!

Yes, it can be disabled by the /noaim command, but noone knew this before this post.

And already who knew this, protected it like a secret.

I think that there was a lack of information from LA-PAndemic around this Joypad Autoaiming feature and the function of the /noaim command.
You already knew it because you are one of the developers, but the 95% of the players doesn't knew this before this post.

And who discovered it was considered a very skilled player...

psych0fred wrote:Yeah it looks like the auto-aim is not in the gui, but FYI all the gui does is replace a shortcut to the app, so anything you see in the dedicated server gui at the bottom under command line could just as easily be added as a switch to a shortcut to the exe. There's a lot of switches that are not represented in the gui. If you know how to search the hex for switches you'll probably find even more surprises.

I have never said that it was in the gui.
But for a lot of other commands there was a description, or howether their functions could be understandable.
For /noaim there was not any description, because noone could imagine an aimhelp like this.

Howether the list of commands that we know is this:

-name
/name
-connect
+connect
/connect
/install
/fixedfunction
/win
/nocheckcd
/log
/resolution
/gameslice
/difficulty
/noteamdamage
/noaim
/password
/tps
/nomovies
/randomize
/heroes
/netregion EUR JAP NA
/bots
/sideselect
/netplayers
/throttle
/crashed
/noai
/soundwarning
/quakecam
/skill
/team
/fixedrate
/nosound
/nowait
/norender
/lan
/gamename
/playerlimit
/playercount
/autonet
/nodrag
/loss
/latency
/bandwidth
/nonames
/firstperson
/notvalues
/playback
/record
/loadspam
/lang
/demomode
/framerate
/ainotext
/ai
/NTGUI
/profile



Edit: Why you don't make a little description for each command in the list?
There are some (like /quakecam or /skill) that are completely unknown.

=XSL=Fds[iTa] wrote:

fett42 wrote:Other PC games have the autoaim feature and I think some use it with the mouse as well as gamepads.

Those things are called cheats.

Do you know Punkbuster?

Howether in online matches can be disable with the /noaim server-side command.

It depends on the game. If it is built into the game as a feature that the programmers wanted to include for gamepads, especially if you can enable and disable it from the options menu, then it isn't cheating. If you use a separate program or files to alter the game so it will automatically aim for you, as in an aim-bot or something like that, then it is cheating.

The auto-aim feature for PC is probably a lot like the PS2 version. If I remember right, in the PS2 version it seems like most of the shots from the auto-aim hit the body rather than the head. Body shots are weaker than head shots. All it really does is lock-on to the target you're aiming at to help with how poorly gamepads are compared to a mouse and keyboard with FPS games. Any fairly good player using a mouse and keyboard should be able to beat anyone using a gamepad and auto-aim since the person using the mouse and keyboard will probably get more head shots than the person using the gamepad.

fett42 wrote:Any fairly good player using a mouse and keyboard should be able to beat anyone using a gamepad and auto-aim since the person using the mouse and keyboard will probably get more head shots than the person using the gamepad.

The problem is that it is the opposite!

If you setup your joypad with different controls for moving X and Y axis of your crossair you can move with the control of Y a. the crossair at head's Height, and then move only the X axis for move your crossair near the target.
The Autoaim lock the crossair on the target, but the crossair was at Head Height and so all the bolts that you shot go on the head, and so you make more headshots then a mouse user.

If you think that it is impossible try it, i have tried and i have seen the effect.
This is why we made the first post.

Howether see this second demo video, now used during a normal action:

http://www.xslclan.com/joypadcheatsurve ... ondemo.wmv

I think that all the doubt about the efficency of this autoaiming help will disappear

Any additional thoughts about the advantages of dodging with a game pad, FDS?

I have heard that sometime it aim enemy mines like enemy soldiers, but we didn't test it, so i'm not sure about this.